DUBAI // A sense of inspiration filled the room yesterday during the launch of the eighth Emirates Women Award.
"Each and every one of us is extraordinary," said Raja al Gurg, the president of the Dubai Business Women Council. "Each one of us has the ability to harness our knowledge and skills. If you have strength, you can excel."
The award, which was founded in 2003 in collaboration with the Dubai Quality Group, is intended to acknowledge women for their successes and contributions to the community and encourage future generations of women to achieve their potential.
The award is open to Emiratis as well as expatriates who have been residents for at least three years. The selection criteria include leadership, financial performance and achievements, future goals, community contribution and innovation.
According to Ms al Gurg, there are 14,000 businesswomen, with 4,000 in Dubai, 3,800 in Abu Dhabi and the remainder distributed between Sharjah and Ajman. "Reaching the number one position regarding our work to enhance the value of the award or in our roles as businesswomen is not an easy task," she said. "[This] cannot happen without solid groundings, methods of action and assessment, and healthy and honest competition."
Judith Barton, the chief assessor of the award, said it was evident that women were striving for excellence as more women apply for the award each year.
"Since 2004, the Emirates Women Award has attracted applicants from approximately five per cent of the professional female population," she said. "This is the highest percentage anywhere in the world according to anecdotal evidence."
While healthy competition does foster progress, Ms al Gurg said it was important not to be preoccupied with comparisons but rather to focus on how this opportunity would benefit aspiring women and the community.
"We're not here to compare ourselves using figures - whether it be with men or with other countries," she said. "We're here to use this opportunity to nurture the talent that exists within the country and use this chance to create role models to inspire others."
Fatima al Jaber, the chairwoman of the Abu Dhabi Business Women Council, said that strong will and determination were the key ingredients to success for any entrepreneur.
"We must remember the first businesswomen pioneers who created the iron foundations of what we have inherited," Ms al Jaber said. "They began small; they possessed only limited finances and little entitlement. But they had fierce and unlimited ambitions, undaunted hopes, and above all, firm belief in their cause."
The deadline for applying for the award is April 7 and awards will be distributed at the end of May.
mismail@thenational.ae
match info
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Muniain 37')
Atletico Madrid 1 (Costa 39')
Man of the match Iker Muniain (Athletic Bilbao)
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
PRO BASH
Thursday’s fixtures
6pm: Hyderabad Nawabs v Pakhtoon Warriors
10pm: Lahore Sikandars v Pakhtoon Blasters
Teams
Chennai Knights, Lahore Sikandars, Pakhtoon Blasters, Abu Dhabi Stars, Abu Dhabi Dragons, Pakhtoon Warriors and Hyderabad Nawabs.
Squad rules
All teams consist of 15-player squads that include those contracted in the diamond (3), platinum (2) and gold (2) categories, plus eight free to sign team members.
Tournament rules
The matches are of 25 over-a-side with an 8-over power play in which only two fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle. Teams play in a single round robin league followed by the semi-finals and final. The league toppers will feature in the semi-final eliminator.
Dubai Rugby Sevens
November 30, December 1-2
International Vets
Christina Noble Children’s Foundation fixtures
Thursday, November 30:
10.20am, Pitch 3, v 100 World Legends Project
1.20pm, Pitch 4, v Malta Marauders
Friday, December 1:
9am, Pitch 4, v SBA Pirates
England squad
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Coady, Marc Guehi, Reece James, Harry Maguire, Tyrone Mings, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Ben White
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Conor Gallagher, Mason Mount, Jordan Henderson, Declan Rice, James Ward-Prowse
Forwards: Tammy Abraham, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe, Raheem Sterling
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
